


The End of a Dream

by Ethereal_Wishes



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Abuse, Angst with a Happy Ending, Domestic Fluff, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Pregnancy, Surrogacy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-01
Updated: 2018-07-01
Packaged: 2019-05-31 13:57:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15120875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ethereal_Wishes/pseuds/Ethereal_Wishes
Summary: Aspiring college student, Belle French, simply wants to make her life debt free when she signs up to become a surrogate.  Roderick Gold yearned to mend his broken marriage with his estranged wife when he suggested they hire a surrogate - to fulfill an empty void in their lives.  However, he never planned for things to spiral out of control when his wife leaves him halfway through Belle's pregnancy.   Sparks fly, and some dreams must come to an end, so better ones can begin.





	The End of a Dream

The End of a Dream: Part One

A/AN: You may recognize this fic and title; This work was deleted because I was unhappy with it. However it's about to undergo a serious rewrite. I hope you enjoy the new turns it will take. The plot is the same, but there will be several differences from the last time.

Belle's feet ached significantly. After surviving the mad lunch rush at Granny's Diner and pulling a double shift, she wondered if securing her master's degree was truly worth it. Living in a crummy one bedroom apartment and paying her way through college had been cumbersome. Finding another way to earn money in Storybrooke was futile. There were no other positions she could take, which would coincide with her strenuous, school workload.

Belle had been friends with Granny's granddaughter, Ruby, since primary school, and it was one reason she'd been given a job with such flexible hours. Today was supposed to have been her day off to study, but two waitresses had called out with the stomach bug, putting, Granny, in an inconvenient bind. Belle had graciously agreed to come in, because she owed the older woman dearly for all she'd done for her.

Thankfully, Ruby, had just latched the door and turned the open sign to closed. It was half past ten, and all she yearned to do was crawl into bed and collapse from exhaustion.

"Phew! We did it, girlfriend!" Ruby announced, swiping sweat from her brow.

"Yeah, and we get to do it all over again tomorrow," Belle deadpanned, sliding into a chair and propping up her sore feet.

"Doubles suck, but at least your next paycheck will be decent," Ruby remarked, grabbing a broom to sweep the floor.

"Yeah, I need to save all I can, especially with finals approaching. I'll be too busy studying to work at all during that week," Belle replied, brushing a stray tendril of hair from her eyes.

"Well, there are faster ways to make money if you're looking for another outlet. You could become a sexy webcam model, sell your used lingerie online, donate your eggs..." Ruby drawled on, coming up with unappealing and unethical ways to make extra cash.

"I believe I'll pass on all of that." Belle wrinkled her nose in disgust as she proceeded to wipe down tables and chairs.

"Who said hustling was easy?" Ruby joked, granting her a flirty wink.

Belle laid down the rag, perching her hand on her hip. "Am I supposed to believe you've partaken of a few of these risqué endeavors?"

Ruby smirked, holding her hands up in defense. "I plead the fifth."

"I'd honestly rather not know," Belle mumbled as Granny burst through the kitchen doors.

"Make sure everything is spic and span before you leave, ladies," Mrs. Lucas clucked, eying her granddaughter warily.

"It will be, Granny, as it always is," Ruby huffed.

"Don't get an attitude with me, young lady. Remember who employs you and keeps a roof over your head!" Granny chided.

Belle mentally blocked out the bickering pair as she contemplated what, Ruby, had suggested. There had to be an easier means of making ends meet while attending to her studies. Her curiosity prompted a late night internet search. Most of what she discovered were internships which were several hours away. Truthfully, she couldn't afford to leave Storybrooke, not with her meager savings, anyway.

She was about to give up and retire for the evening, when an overlooked website caught her eye. She rubbed sleep from her eyes as she clicked on the icon. A large banner appeared at the top of the webpage: "Mother Goose's Surrogacy Agency". It was an organization just outside of Boston. They hired women to have babies for paying clients. The stipulations to become a surrogate were strict, but the payout was enormous.

Belle rubbed her tired eyes once more, bookmarking the page for future reference. Carrying someone else's child hadn’t ever crossed her mind, but she had never perceived herself as the settling down type. She longed to see the world, and as soon as she secured her degree, she would leave Storybrooke in the dust, forever. Traveling the globe had always been her dream, not marriage or babies or white picket fences.

She reasoned in her mind she could undergo this – giving a happy couple something they weren't capable of on their own. She rationalized she could easily give up a child to make another person's dream come true, if it meant furthering her own aspirations. As she dozed off, she mentally noted to call the clinic and schedule an appointment – a decision which would change the rest of her life.

~X~

"Do you honestly believe I could stay with an insufferable man like you, Roderick!?" Milah Gold scoffed, grabbing her purse and heading for the door. She was weary of her humdrum husband. He was irritating, and she felt the urge to retch every time she gazed upon his loathsome face. They'd stopped having sex over a year ago, and sharing a room longer than she could recollect. In the beginning their relationship had been thrilling, and they traveled constantly. But the life she'd grown accustomed to had lost its flare after his accident. He'd shattered the bones in his left ankle after a car wreck.

He'd claimed to have blacked out before crashing into an electric pole. He'd been driving her precious Porsche to beat it all! It had been an irreplaceable wedding gift from her father. She'd never been able to forgive him after that. The doctor had diagnosed it as the result of low blood pressure, claiming he was fortunate to be alive. He'd walk with a limp the rest of his life, and Milah was too proud to be shackled to a cripple.

She'd recently spoken to her divorce lawyer, and he'd be served with papers soon enough. Severing all ties with him had been her plan, but another ploy bloomed in her mind as her sniveling, halfwit husband hobbled after her.

"Milah, please wait!" he pleaded, lightly touching her shoulder.

Milah flinched, wrenching away from his grasp. "How many times have I told you not to touch me!?" She scowled, brushing off her shoulder as if his touch had tainted her. Her reaction stung him, but he stifled back the tears misting behind his eyes.

"Milah, I know you don't love me anymore, but I believe there's a way we could salvage our marriage. Perhaps causing you to feel some type of affection for me again," he remarked timidly - a dog begging for scraps.

Milah guffawed. "Whatever your plotting, it must be one heck of an idea if you believe it'd make me even consider staying."

Roderick rubbed his hands together nervously as Milah glared at him, like he was the most vile vermin on the planet. He'd grown accustomed to her venomous responses, but he'd convinced himself she would come around after hearing his brilliant plan. It would be the glue which would draw them back together; he just knew it.

"Well, out with it!" she barked, yanking him from his reverie.

"I know you've longed for a child for years, and I recently contacted a surrogacy center, just outside of Boston. I made us an appointment, and I thought we could go together – to see what our options are," he explained, hopeful.

Milah's countenance softened at his request. No, she didn't plan on mending things with Roderick, but she would humor him. It would be a nice distraction, which would give her the ultimate satisfaction when she duped him in the end.

She reached out, stroking his cheek with false affection. "Of course, darling, that sounds like an excellent idea," she cooed, filling him with false hope.

"I knew it'd make you happy," he stammered, granting her a demure smile.

"Yes, it most certainly has," she grinned, ecstatic about how she would break him for good. He'd ruined her life and their marriage, and she would certainly devastate his, when a squirming, demanding child was placed in his arms, that she didn't aim to stick around for.

A/AN: Milah is truly vile, and that isn't going to change. I typically write my villains this way, so be prepared for some future angst.


End file.
